A Pirate's Life for Me
by MistressLeia24
Summary: AU.Guy is the dashing captain of the famous Alboire pirates. Natalia is Kimlasca's princess and betrothed to the powerful Asch fon Fabre. By chance of "kidnapping" the two are thrown together and despite the odds, Natalia finds herself falling in l-o-v-e.
1. Day 1: Tense First Impressions

**A Pirate's Life for Me**

**A/N: Hello again! I know I said I would be updating my chaptered stories, but I couldn't resist writing a new one. This is what happens after sevens hours of nothing but pirate stuff. You will be confused with this chapter. DO NOT WORRY! I wanted to do something different for the starting chapter so I decided to do one of those pick it up in the middle and then go back. The next two chapters will tell you what happened before this chapter. Bear with me.**

**FYI: This is an AU fic. It is no way in assocation with the main story line or plot other than what I mention. A few of the characters (Arietta) will be somewhat out of character because of this. Again, bear with me. Please excuse all spelling mistakes too. I've yet to get a beta reader and my eyes alone can't spot every mistake. This was also kind of made to replace Runaway Princess. I'm not that into it anymore and somehow I seem obessed with pirates nowadays. **

**Disclaimer: Namco owns all related characters. **

**FYI again: Pirate Crew 1: The Alboires. Status: Good. Ship: The Gailardia. Members: Guy, Luke, Anise, Noelle, and Jade (who works in Keterburg for them)**

**Pirate Crew 2: The God-Generals Status: Bad. Ship: The Nebilim Members: Sync, Legretta, Arietta, and Dist (who works in Daath for them). **

**Pairings: GuyXNatalia (duh!), LukeXTear, SyncXArietta (very mild though and you could skip over it if you want), onesided GuyXNoelle, and onesided NataliaXAsch. Possible Emperor PeonyXNephry but no sure. **

**Hopefully that will help clear things up. You will know more about the character's positions by the next chapter, promise. Again, just bear with for the first chapter. **

_38__th__ Lunaday, Rem Decan, ND2017_

_Seas Bordering Malkuth and Kimlasca territory _

_Aboard the __Gailardia_

Anise Tatlin was pissed off.

Not the mildly annoyed pissed off either, but the "I'm-gonna-hurt-the-next-person-who-crosses-my-path" pissed off.

And when the young girl got this way, to the point where she had that familiar glint in her eye and was scanning the deck for her next victim, the crew stayed **far **away from her. Far, far, far away. Like another world away if they could.

There were only two now known things that could drive her to this level of frustration, too. One was losing treasure to their rivals, the God-Generals, and the other was protected by the sturdy door that separated her from murdering the female behind it.

"Look Princess," Anise sighed, her black curls tumbling within her suntanned face as she closed her eyes to regain her almost lost composure, "This is the only "suitable" food me and the Captain could scrounge together. If you don't eat it now, I don't want to hear you complaining about how the crew devoured it in two seconds flat and you're dying of starvation. Do you know how many people living on the seas would kill for this kind of food? Be lucky we didn't give you what the crew eats; water and soup made out of Lorelei knows what."

Slamming the tray of food on the ground in front of the still closed doors, the female tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for a response.

A few passing crew members raised an eyebrow at her but continued on with their set task, left to ponder why the second mate was standing, irked, in front of a shut door leading to the Captains corridors.

Most of the men could guess that it had something to do with the Princess they "picked up" in Baticul.

"Ooooh Princess," the girl drawled on, confirming some of staff's suspicions. It was really no surprise to many of them that the Princess had locked herself in the Captain's quarters with her high standards and all.

"Please!" came the sharp remark, the door being cracked open just a bit to reveal the look of disgust upon the Princess's heart-shaped face. Her evergreen eyes narrowed at Anise, then at the tray of food laid out before the door, then back to Anise. "You really expect me to eat _that? _And address me properly from now on. Say Your Majesty or Your Highness. Just because I am your captive doesn't mean I'm not of royalty."

Anyone could tell just by looking at the woman that she was high class. From the way her short, strawberry blonde was crimped at the ends and kept out of her face with a lacey, detailed headband, to her spotless, reflecting, slip-on shoes. She wore an aqua choker with a white rose as the center and a matching dress that fawned out in what looked like downward petals of a flower. Her shoulders were bare expect for the long, pearl white gloves running up the length of her arm and azure, beaded bracelet clipped on her right arm. A pair of long white stockings that could almost pass off as tights covered her well-toned legs.

But it wasn't the outfit that gave her away; it was the way she held herself. Back erect, head high, heals clipped together… She was like the vision of Princess Instructor or something.

Anise rolled her brown eyes at the older woman's demands. Did all Princesses have such high standards? "Whatever. And yeah. I'm expecting you to eat this. That was kind of the whole point of me bringing it here.

She watched as the blonde's face constricted into a look of utter distaste as she surveyed the food. "UGH!! H-How-! How… How repulsive!"

Anise glanced at the food the Captain himself had gathered for said female. It really didn't look that bad. Two whole pieces of slightly stale bread, no mold, some slices of cheese (more like pity trinkets from the chief), and a small goblet of fresh milk. It wasn't like they had a five-star restaurant on the ship and supplies were depleting fast because of the unsuccessful pit stop in Baticul. They didn't have a lot to spare and considering that, this was like gold to them. …Well, most of them.

"Look in a mirror if you want repulsive," she muttered in response, clicking her tongue in annoyance. Just keep pushing it, Princess. Just keep pushing it…

Crossing her white-gloved arms over her turquoise clad chest, the strawberry blonde Princess glared at the girl. "What was that?"

"N-Nothing. I just said that you should at least try the food before turning it down." Be nice, be nice. The Captain said to be nice.

The older female rolled her eyes. "This coming from a girl who doesn't know the first thing about proper manners and is dressed like…well…like _that_."

Oh it was on now.

Truthfully, Anise had to admit that she did look a bit…eccentric. With her larger than normal golden hoop earrings, pink bandanna tired around her black pigtails, and swishy, but slimming pink dress complete with black lace details, she was out of the norm compared to someone like Natalia. Her black, strap sandals and matching tights that peeked out from under the edge of form-fitting dress probably didn't help matters either. Btu she was a pirate for Yulia's sake! She wasn't trying to win a fashion show and she looked better than half of the men on board this ship! Noelle probably had her beat in cuteness though.

Maybe it was the loose dark corset, black choker, and fingerless gloves that really didn't seem to go together all that well.

Screw being nice… And screw the Captain for that matter.

"I'll take that as a compliment coming from you," she retorted, placing one hand on her hip and a devilish smirk coming to her lips. "I'd rather be cute then old and ugly any day."

"W-! Wha-?! What?! You insolent little girl!! How dare you insult me, Princess Natalia Luzu Kim-!"

"Oh, just stop it," the black-haired female interrupted the shell-shocked Princess, "You're so full of yourself, it's almost pathetic."

"Y-Y-You-!" stuttered Natalia, unable to form a full sentence because of the vicious insults. Never, in all her life, had she been spoken to in such a manner. Not even by a Malkuth superior. Were all pirates really this… this…ill-mannered?

Turning her back on the blonde, Anise picked up the food tray that had now caught many of the stray crew member's eyes and slowly started to walk away. "Oh, and by the way," she said darkly, glancing over her shoulder at the gaping woman, "That's a nice look for you. Looks like you're catching flies."

"Now hold it right there, you…you…barbaric girl!" Natalia practically screamed across the deck, earning more attention from the passing workers. Fortunately for her, the second mate stopped her descent, whirled around on her heels, and arched one eyebrow, as if waiting for her to continue.

Gaining confidence, the blonde took one timid step out of the doorframe so that she was fully face to face with this "pirate." Hands on her hips, she tried to maintain her best scowl on the girl. "One, I am not old; not by any stretch of the imagination; two, to call me ugly is a federal crime and I'll see that as soon as we get back to Baticul that you are arrested and imprisoned for the rest of your worthless life!" she yelled, allowing the volume of her voice to rise with each word.

A chorus of "Oooohs!" rang out around the gathering crowd.

Natalia suddenly blinked in confusion, as if she had just realized something. "….What is your name by the way? I have to know your name if I want to imprison you."

The whole time during the older woman's rant, Anise had just stood there; one hand on her hip and one eyebrow rose. No emotion showed other than the stone expression that seemed to be cemented on her face.

"Uh…." muttered the Princess, fiddling with a stray thread off of her cerulean dress. She took one hesitant step backwards so that her back was pressed against the door, ready to make a quick escape to the safety of the Captain's Quarters if necessary. "Your name?"

Once again all the girl did was blink in response.

Several crew members had now gathered around the two now, forming a circle that made it impossible for Natalia to simply run to the edge of the ship, jump off the railing, and somehow swim to Baticul. Never mind the fact that she had never taken swimming lessons.

A sudden, harsh, but jovial chorus of laughter echoing around the ship brought the blonde back from her hypothesizing leap. Scanning the area around her, Natalia's eyes widened in surprise when she saw it was Anise who was laughing.

The raven-haired girl was clutching her side with one arm while the other, miraculously supported the food she was meant to give. The chuckles almost sounded like something a mad man would say, but not quite.

Breathing in between giggles, Anise managed to stammer, "So-haha-the old hag-hahah-actually has some-hehe-guts!"

"OLD HAG?!" she echoed, eyes widening and cheeks burning with humiliation as the other crew members also began snickering at the remark. Oh, that was it. That little-! How dare she insult her in public! Her only hope was that the Captain was not around to see her behaving in such a manner. On the other hand, if he was around, he might discipline this rude girl for her impoliteness. She also might be able to hold and intellectual conversation with someone at least within range of her social status.

"Burn," stated a scrawny man near the edge of the group. Both females ignored the commentary for the peanut gallery.

"Yeah. O-L-D, old, H-A-G, hag," Anise spelled out, seemingly recovering from her laughing fit. "Look it up in a dictionary; there's bound to be a picture of you there."

"Double burn," chirped a smaller boy to the scrawny man from before.

"S-Such disrespect! Haven't any of you been taught any manners?" Natalia commented, hands once again on her hips as she slowly backed up further into the room behind her. She was not going to just sit here and be offended or stoop to such a low level as to throw remarks back. "What makes you think I'm old anyways?"

"That's easy. You won't eat this food. Only old hags want fine dining and such. Cute, young girls like me or fine with food like this," Anise explained, holding the tray out to the blonde. "And we're pirates! Since when do pirates have manners? Lady, I don't know what world you're living in, but it's a dream world."

Regarding the youthful pirate and the tray of now delicious looking food because of the growls of hunger escaping her stomach, the Princess chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. "I suppose I need to keep up my strength for when we get back to Baticul and I have you all imprisoned," she mused, slowly reaching out for the food, "and this food doesn't look poisonous…but if you cooked it I'd have to reconsider."

"Har, har. You're hilarious, Princess."

"So…" the noble continued, ignoring Anise's comment, "I guess I could down a few pieces of bread. Although you would have to take back your old hag statement if I did."

Anise sighed. She knew getting the Princess to eat by any means was not going to be easy. And honestly she didn't expect things to go like this. "Alright, alright. You're not an old hag."

"You're not an old hag what?" Natalia drawled on, crossing her arms over her chest again.

Must resist urge to murder. Must resist urge to murder. "You're not an old hag, Your Majesty," she finished with an overly grand flourish of her other hand in an elegant bow.

"That's all I ask for. A little respect will get you a long way in life," the older female advised, taking the food tray and gracefully turning her back on the crew. "Good day."

Mumbles of "Good day, Princess" and "Good day, Your Highness" chimed through the still listening crew members.

"See?" Natalia observed, setting the food down on a nearby nightstand and holding the edge of the door with one hand. "You barbaric pirates do have some manners." She couldn't resist. "Although you could probably do without that little _shrimp _you seem to have caught along the way."

Just as the blonde slammed the door shut in the slightly stunned faces of the pirates and locked it, a loud thud of someone's body crashing into a door echoed along her present quarters.

"AND YOU CALL ME BARBARIC!?" came Anise's familiar voice from outside the door, accompanied by her fist pounding on the door. "JUST WAIT UNTIL I GET MY HANDS ON YOU, YOU STUCK-UP SNOB AND SORRY EXCUSE FOR A PRINCESS!! I'LL KILL YOU, YOU HEAR ME!!"

"Like I said," Natalia replied cockily, a hand going to her lips to stifle her chuckles. "Barbaric and short!"

"I'M STILL GROWING, DAMNIT!! AND I AM, NOT BY ANY MEANS, A FRICKING SHRIMP!! WHY DON'T YOU COME OUT AND SAY THAT TO MY FACE YOU COWARD!?"

"I may be a coward but at least I'm not demented and stupid."

"I SWEAR, ONE MORE INSULT AND I WILL TEAR THIS DOOR DOWN AND SINK THIS SHIP WITH YOU STILL ON IT!!"

"That makes no sense, dear. You would also drown and be charged with murder."

"FINE THEN!! I'LL JUST KILL YOU!! HOW 'BOUT THAT!?"

"It'll be amusing to watch you try," Natalia chuckled, ending the conversation and taking up her usual position on the red velvet couch to the side.

That was fun. They really should do that more often.

Only the constant shouts of "I'LL KILL YOU!!" and the hammering of small fists on the door, fruitlessly trying to make it give, disturbed Natalia's meal.

**A/N: I know. Many of you are like, "Huh?!" Let me try and clear things up. Natalia is still the Princess of Kimlasca who was kidnapped by the Alboires. Anise if the second mate, meaning you can probably guess from the information at the way top who's who. That's all I can tell you for now. Remember, this is a completely different universe. Completely different. No relation to the other story line whatsoever. Tear will appear in this, do not worry. **

**Things will clear up in the next chapter, promise. Until then please give me feedback on what you think of it so far. Feedback is like gold to us authors. Until then! **


	2. The Day Before: Preparations

**A Pirate's Life for Me**

**A/N: FINALLY!! It is complete!! All 10,000 words!! And you all thought you had long chapters! Thank you so much for all the of the reviews last chapter. I can not thank you enough! (And just so you guys and gals know, I'm not afraid of long reviews or anything. I'll take what I get and appreciate even the small reviews but I know that some people sometimes want to say more but decide against it. -Guilty- Just wanted to let you all know) Not much to say... We're introduced to all of main characters in this chapter so I hope this sastifies you all. (And if any of you dare say this chapter isn't long enough, I swear you are dead!) Enjoy!**

_37__th__ Remday, Rem Decan, ND2017_

_Baticul the Capital of Light_

_Inside the Local Inn, First Floor, Third Room_

_One Day Before…_

"Nnnh…" How much longer could they go at it?

"I'm telling you it is pure suicide!"

"And I'm telling you that it's the only way we're gonna get the Princess and avoid our impending execution!"

"_There won't be any need for an execution if we all die during the mission!!"_

"_We'll be dead anyways if we let Malkuth and Kimlasca sign that peace treaty!!_ Stealing the gem along with the princess eliminates that possibility!"

"Captain…" Legretta sighed in defeat, plopping down on the slim chair behind her and massaging her temples. He was _impossible_!

Sync followed suit and angrily glared at his first mate from the opposite end of the coffee table they were positioned around. It wasn't like her to question his brilliant strategies, let alone yell at him like that. Yes, even he had to admit the plan was risky, but weren't all heists? You had to risk something in order to get something valuable in return; that was his motto.

Arietta gave a disheartened sigh at the two's bickering, head throbbing from the loud volume within the small bedroom. She was sitting off to the side of the table, legs tucked underneath her skinny frame, and was content with just listening in to their discussion. She was usually exempt from any battle planning but since she didn't want to wait back at the ship with the drunken crew, she had chosen to accompany her Captain to the local inn for the night.

The reason she didn't have to come?

She held no real position within the God-General pirates. Well… Unless "Captain's Girl" counted as a rank.

"Legretta," Sync said, trying to reason with her logical mind again. "If we let Asch fon Fabre of Malkuth marry Princess Natalia tomorrow, Kimlasca's and Malkuth's military forces will combine and who do you think will their first target?"

"The pirates," she answered, face still resting on the palm of her hand and dark black cloak shrouding her figure.

"Exactly. Sooner or later, the Albiores would be captured and then we would have no one to throw the blame onto. We would be backed up into a corner, Legretta. The military isn't stupid and they would be quick to catch on to our robberies, meaning we would be next on their list." His fist came down hard on the table to emphasize his point, matching black cloak rippling with the sudden movement.

Arietta guessed that if the familiar golden mask didn't cover his face, he would be glowering at his first mate. She suppressed a shudder at the image and wrapped her cloak tighter around her, patiently listening to the drawn out two-hour argument.

"I understand that Captain but-," the blonde began, head lifting up to look at the green-haired boy.

"No, Legretta, I don't think you do!" he spat, standing up suddenly and causing the chair to fall backwards with a clunk. "We will be dead if we do nothing! At least if we try and kidnap the Princess we have a small chance of succeeding! Yes, it's a risk, but I'm willing to take it!"

"Sir, it's not the risk I'm worried about! It's the consequences afterwards! If we kidnap her sooner or later we'll be hunted down and executed faster than we would be if we did nothing! The Princess also has that "condition" that we know nothing about and do not have the proper resources to treat!"

Biting her bottom lip, Arietta looked from one fuming teammate to the next, brows furrowing together. They both had good points…but kidnapping the Princess did seem a bit extreme and no doubt Kimlasca would have their heads as soon as they found out.

"…What about lying low after the marriage?" she offered timidly, twirling a lock of her cotton pink hair around her finger. Technically, it wasn't her place to speak up but they were getting absolutely nowhere with Legretta and Sync just yelling at one another.

"There are too many debts to be paid," Sync retorted, calming down slightly. "Our food supply is getting low, sailors are demanding to be paid, and the ship's repairs have been held off long enough. We can't afford to stay in hiding at times like this."

"Oh," the pink-haired girl murmured. Sure the crew had been getting a little rebellious lately, but she had no idea it was more than just not getting paid a month ago. Money was tight, the Albiores were gaining on them, they were cornered by future paths, and to top it all off, two enemy countries were about to unite and probably annihilate all of them. "Then what would kidnapping the Princess do for our finances?" Surely they could pull off a less risky operation to earn some cash.

"There's a gem embedded on her hand," Legretta explained, holding out the palm of her hand and tracing a rough jewel shape on it. "It's called the Kimlascan Jewel of Prosperity and as long as it's attached directly to a member of the royal bloodline, Kimlasca is supposed to flourish. But there are some…unwanted side effects."

"Like what?" Arietta probed, confusion clouding her brain. She silently cursed herself for not paying attention at the recent meetings. She knew she had heard of something along those lines before… Sync had mentioned it; she was sure.

…Ugh! Why had she felt the need to play with that baby liger during the last meeting? She should've been listening darn it! Stupid memory… Asking this many questions was just delaying their inevitable course of action which would be going after the Princess whether the females liked it or not. Sync was the Captain after all; he word was law and if it wasn't followed, consider yourself dead in a matter of seconds.

Legretta clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth, searching for the right words. "Well… Let's see… It-It releases this…poison, basically, into the skin that…messes with the person's vital organs. That's a rough explanation of it really, but not much about it is known. The royal family keeps all of its records on it locked away tight and I'm not even sure if the public is aware of it. A few former servants and gardeners were the only ones our informers could find that would talk about it and even then their stories were shady at best."

Arietta blinked in puzzlement. "But what benefits would poisoning the next heir to the throne have? Without an heir, Kimlasca would crumble to Malkuth forces in a matter of days."

"That's where things get even more muddled," Sync muttered, picking up his fallen chair and leaning backwards in it, feet resting on the table. "The gem didn't always put the bearer's life in danger so we can safely guess by rumors going about that Malkuth forces have something to do with it. Whether it was some forbidden fonic arte or just a side effect of age, no one knows."

Forbidden…fonic arte? Being a fonist herself, Arietta was generally intrigued by this bit of information. Perhaps she could learn it… Surely that would earn the Captain's praise and attention.

"But the point isn't how the gem infected," Legretta continued, "It's how to cure it. Right now the Princess is barely surviving by getting proper treatment every week or so and the only known remedy lay in a ring that belongs to Duke Fabre's son of Malkuth."

"So that's the reason for the wedding," Arietta murmured.

Sync nodded his head. "Exactly. A gem like that would be worth a pretty penny alone in a black market, but attached to the Princess herself no less would be worth unfathomable gald. …Either way you look at it, kidnapping the Princess is our only option. If worse comes to worse we could always dump her off at the nearest shoreline and frame the Albiores."

"That's inhumane," Legretta pointed out, ice blue eyes flashing.

"We're _pirates, _Legretta. Not some fun-in-the-sun band of idiots that always abides by the rules. We do what we need to survive."

"And what do you plan to do about the gem's side effect?"

He paused for a moment, hands clasped together with his index finger and thumb parallel to one another as they tapped against his chin. "Arietta?" he said finally, glancing over at the girl.

"Y-Yes sir?"

"You know standard healing artes right?"

She blinked. "O-Of course, sir."

The Captain arched an eyebrow at Legretta in a smug manner as if to say, 'There; you have your answer.'

The blonde mate met his determined face and heaved a sigh. "I suppose there's no use in trying to change your mind… Shall I inform the men then?"

"No," Sync answered, pulling out a rolled up piece of parchment from within the confounds of his cloak. "Now that we know our course of action, I need someone to bounce battle tactics off of." With a flick of his wrist, the parchment unrolled on the table to reveal sketches and diagrams off what looked like Baticul palace. His non-visible eyes looked over at Arietta who was still crouched down on the floor, waiting orders tolerantly. "Arietta, go inform the men that they need to be ready for battle at sundown tonight."

Eager to please her Captain, the girl immediately hopped to her feet and gave him a quick nod of respect. "Yes sir!" Turning on her heels, Arietta bounded through the doorway without a second glance, hoping that the two wouldn't break out into another argument over tactics. If they had continued on like that for another hour, they would have lost the precious time they had to make any move.

With any luck, Legretta and Sync would devise a full proof plan that would hopefully lead to few casualties and go as smoothly as possible. All she had to do was prepare some high level artes for the attack and hope that the Albiores wouldn't interfere this time around.

If they didn't, who knows where the God-Generals would be.

XxxxxxxX

"Jeez you'd think these idiots would learn to close a window when discussing top-secret plans," sighed Anise, glancing above her.

Crouched right outside the cracked window, the raven-haired girl had listened to the whole conversation, exhausted after the first hour but put up with it long enough to get the gist of their plans. Snapping her small notepad shut and sticking her pen through the top spirals, Anise slowly inched her way along the brick wall behind her, keeping directly under the window sill. All she had to do was make it out of their earshot and she was home free… Well, almost. Hopefully she wouldn't run into Gloomietta along the way.

Freezing, Anise listened carefully to the fading footsteps of Arietta as she passed right by the girl's hiding place, thankfully not taking any notice of her.

"Too close," she whispered, wiping sweat from her brow. The afternoon sun had been pounding on her for two hours now and she most likely had a sunburn along her arms and scalp. Oh joy. "The Captain better double my pay for this."

Cautiously, the second mate slinked out of the alley way she had been hiding in and did a quick scan of the bustling streets. Excellent. Arietta wasn't anywhere to be found.

Anise tucked the notepad into the folds of her dress as she calmly started down the street, picking up pace the farther she got and soon disappearing into the masses of people.

XxxxxxxX

_Baticul Castle_

_Princess's Chambers…_

"Ohhhh! Master, that looks wonderful! It's so shiny!"

"It's only a picture, Mieu."

"Really? Mieuuu… It's still pretty though"

"It is quite…beautiful. Congratulations by the way."

"Why thank you, Tear," Natalia replied, smile gracing her lips. "It's really not that big of deal though. I've never even met the man. It's an arranged marriage after all." With a sigh, her gaze returned to the vanity mirror she was sitting in front of, her reflection staring back at her. On the very corner of the mirror, kept in place by a bobby pin clipped to the edge, was a ripped out picture of a silver ring.

Her future wedding ring that would be presented to her tonight by none other than Asch fon Fabre: The Malkuth Ring of Loyalty. She had to laugh at the name though. Couldn't they come up with something more original? Then again, the Kimlascan Jewel of Prosperity wasn't any better.

Her wondering evergreen eyes glanced at the clock set upon her wall.

Three thirty… Only hours away from meeting her future husband. Technically, she was really only one day away from her wedding as of now. Meet the guy the day before and then marry him the next. Honestly, couldn't her father come up with something that was less…degrading? Would it lead to the end of the world if they let them meet a week prior, have a few dinners, get to know one another, and then marry?

"Honestly," she muttered, folding her arms across her chest and unconsciously straightening out her posture.

"Mi'lady?" Tear inquired, brush coming to a stop as it made one last swoop through the Princess's now crimped honey-blonde locks. Her cerulean eyes looked from the frowning reflection in the mirror to the real Natalia who was fiddling with the edges of her long white gloves. "What's wrong?"

"Please Tear," Natalia said briskly, spinning around in her seat to glare at her handmaid. "There's no need to be so formal. Natalia will do just fine. …And if you must know, I'm contemplating Father's decision about this fast paced marriage. I don't even know what kind of person this Asch may be. Shouldn't I, as future heir, at least know a little bit about my fiancé before I marry him?"

"Mi'l-," Tear started, smoothing out her red and black skirt as she took a seat on the ottoman positioned at the end of her Mistress's bed. "N-Natalia," she corrected, seeing the narrowed eyes that quickly brightened at her rectification. "I don't feel that it is my place as your servant to give you such advice. Perhaps one of the tutors or the governess could-."

"Tear," the Princess stated, cutting her off with a wave of her hand. "I'm asking you. You have been my personal maid for five years now and you've done an exceptional job. You have every right to be my advisor with matters such as this. Besides, no one would know. It would be for my ears-."

"And mine!" Mieu chirped, raising his hand and pivoting on his tiny legs to face the two females. He had been gazing with wonder at the photo of the ring, imagining how beautiful it would look on his Master's finger, when he had felt the need to pipe into their conversation to feel not so left out.

"For my and Mieu's ears alone," Natalia finished, slouching forward to some extent, crossing her legs, and plopping her elbow on crossed-over leg. "Now, advise me."

Blinking back her surprise, Tear nervously pulled a stray strand of her sandy brown hair that was mostly pulled back into a semi-perfect ponytail. "W-Well… uh… Wh-What_ do_ you know about him?"

"Well," Natalia hummed, picking imaginary lint off her dress. "His name is Asch fon Fabre, obviously, and is the only living son of Duke Fabre and Madame Fabre. Rumor has it that he used to have a younger brother, but they didn't get along very well. They were always fighting over who would inherit the family fortune. Fortunately for Asch, his brother was caught up in Hod's fall at a young age and passed away then. …Much like your brother, Tear."

The brunette slowly nodded her head, eyes downcast and trained on her black shoes. "…It appears so. I-I…I wonder if they knew each other."

While residing in Hod, her brother, Van Grants, and her mother, who was pregnant with her at the time, were caught up in Hod's downfall. Her mother had been lucky enough to survive and receive medical attention but Van…died with the first wave of casualties.

The painful part wasn't the fact that her older brother had died right before she was born; it was that she never even got the chance to know him. She only had the salvaged pictures from her old home and the hearsay of people who had known him. Yet, many of his closest friends also perished along with Hod and pictures only got you so far. She had more questions; she needed more information. What was his favorite color? What were his dreams? What did his voice sound like? Did he ever fall in love?

Stuff like that, couldn't be answered by old photographs or what people thought of him. The words needed to be directly from Van's mouth. And…that was impossible know.

"I apologize, Tear," Natalia whispered. "I didn't mean to bring it up. I know how hard it is on you. But…think about it. At least you now know that you weren't the only one who lost a brother in such a dreadful onslaught."

"Yes…Yes. I suppose you're right."

Mieu bounced from the table top onto Natalia's lap, looking at Tear with bright eyes. "Yeah! And I was separated from my first Master at Hod, too. We used to visit that place a lot. But then I came here and met you two, so it turned out all right!"

Tear had to chuckle at the cheagle's attempt to brighten things up.

"Right," Natalia agreed, patting his head. "Now where was I…? Oh yes! After the loss of his brother, Asch became the legal heir to the Fabre fortune. He planned to enlist in the Malkuth army until he was of authorized age to take over for his father. In the meantime, he attended classes with his private tutor while on the road at war and returned home every winter to be by his sick mother's side."

"He…" Tear paused, blinking in slight disbelief. "He sounds like an exceptional young man. How old is he?"

"Twenty, I believe."

"So he's inherited the fortune already?"

"I believe so." Natalia bit her bottom lip, continuing to gently stroke Mieu's head. "He resigned from the army as soon as he turned twenty and is now an active member of the Malkuth Empire, much as his father was."

"Well… Mi'lady, I-I mean Natalia, you seem to know quite a lot about him."

The honey-blonde shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "I had one of the servants working in the kitchen, you know, the one who works part time at the Malkuth palace, get some information for me. I did not want to be completely clueless about the man I am to marry."

"Oh. From the information given, I presume he would make a fine match for you." The maid didn't see the problem. Her mistress had always dreamed about finding an interesting man to settle down with and start a capable family. "It sounds like he can support a family and be able to live in the lap of luxury while doing it. What's the trouble?"

"W-ell…" she drawled, casting her gaze to the visible sea out her window. "…It's just… He's been everywhere and has seen everything. Compared to me, who was sick since the age of seven and has never even been outside of Baticul, he sounds…restricting."

"Restricting?" questioned the brunette, cocking head to the side a bit to study the Princess's apprehensive features.

"Yes!" exploded Natalia, startling the relaxing Mieu on her lap and slightly shocking her handmaid. "I'm afraid that as soon as we marry, he'll be ready for a married, family life. I still haven't had a life of my very own! I don't want to be bound by marriage yet! I want to be able to see the world on my own, know that I can take care of myself, and then find a man that I **love **to start a loving family with! I hate that it's being decided for me!"

Running a hand through her hair and being done with her outburst, the blonde slouched forward and buried her face in her folded arms. Mieu moved to the side to allow her some space. Never had he seen his Master this distressed before; it worried him. He was pretty sure he had seen some tears brimming along the edges of her eyelashes right before she hid them.

"Mi'lady," Tear started, smoothing out her outfit and switching to her formal speech again. Her voice was shaking to some extent and her eyes were wide with concern. She was used to the Princess's frequent temper tantrums (usually involving such matters as a late guest, poorly cooked supper, or one of the maid's misplacing her favorite butterfly earrings) but this level of distress was new to both her and the dejected female before her. "You could always refuse the marriage."

"…I can't, Tear," came the muffled response, her head still nestled in her arms. "That's the whole point. I-I can't." Natalia lifted her head up to look at her companion; her hair frazzled and her eye makeup smudged. "It's either marry Asch fon Fabre or die from this terrible… this terrible…**THING**!!"

Roughly pulling her long glove off, the future Queen held up the palm of her left hand to the afternoon sunlight. There, embedded in the very palm of her hand, was a smooth, ruby red gem that seemed to melt right into her fair skin. The part showing was completely level with the rest of her hand but around the edges you could see the jagged spikes of where it attached itself. 

Her fingers were left unharmed and only a little blood seeped through now and then, ruining many of the Princess's favorite gloves that she was forced to wear to hide the blasted thing.

The Kimlascan Jewel of Prosperity… _Yeah, prosperity to misery._

"My mother…" Natalia continued in a quivering and dark tone. "My mother died from this thing injecting the miasma into her hand. My father and I almost gave up when she passed away. It's only a matter of time before enough seventh fonons clog my fon seals and the miasma overflows...taking me down with it. I don't want to leave this country vulnerable like it was when Mother died and have Malkuth take another slab of our land. Taking Choral Castle was a big enough impact on our trading lines."

Head bowed out of respect for the depressing events recalled, Tear tried to comfort the future heir. "Mi'lady-."

"The only cure is the ring." The Princess ignored her handmaid's efforts and repeated the lines she had so many times told herself, gaze still on the open sea. "I want to save this country and the ring is the only thing that will allow me to do that. I will go to any means to acquire it; even if it means giving up my freedom."

"Natalia," Tear sighed, hand resting reassuringly on her shoulder while Mieu wrapped his tiny arms around his Master's nearest arm. The maid took a seat next to the upset female; Mieu hoping on her lap to also be closer.

The blonde's gaze was still on her open window, watching as several white seagulls flew by. Water pricked at the very edges of her eyes. No matter what she chose something would have to be given. She couldn't have it both ways.

A shaky sigh escaped her lips as she once again buried her face in her folded arms, not caring that she was getting makeup along the flawless surface.

How in the world was she supposed to decide?

XxxxxxxX

_Outside Baticul's Gates_

_Path Through Inista Marsh…_

A brown carriage noisily rolled its way through the curved and uneven path of the wild marsh, jostling the driver and the beasts pulling the heavy load. Needless to say, the riders inside were not too happy about being thrown about the carriage like rag dolls every time the wheels connected with a stray rock.

"Hey! Dreck!" yelled an irked redhead, sticking his head out the window to glare at the flustered man. "Could you drive any more recklessly? Smooth it out!" At the end of his order, the carriage went over a considerably large bump in the road, causing the noble's head to fly up and crack against the window frame. A string of colorful curses flew from his mouth as he settled back in the coach again and tenderly rubbed where the wood frame had collided with his head. No blood at least…just a possibly horrible bruise that would look oh so darling on his wedding day.

"Sir Asch!" came the chorus of startled, concerned gasps emitting from his two companions inside the stagecoach. "Are you alright?" It was just plain scary how they mimicked each other perfectly.

Glaring at his two assistants, Asch fon Fabre snarled, "Fine. Just peachy in fact. My wedding day is one day away, I have to met my fiancé tonight and make a good first impression, and the coach driver is a moron who can't drive. Why wouldn't I be fine?" The usual sarcasm that seemed to reach an all new high these past few months dripped from his every word.

The stagecoach was suddenly thrown off the ground by a large dip in the path, sending all three crashing into the roof.

"That's it!" Asch roared, gloved hand gripping the left arm of the seat with such a force that his knuckles were probably turning white. "HALT!!"

Well, they had been putting up with this for several hours now. It wasn't a surprise that Asch couldn't bare another second of being thrown about like a ragdoll. He **was** spoiled back home.

Immediately, the carriage lurched to a stop on the command, slightly tossing the three forward before they once again settled back into their velvet seats. The driver gazed over his shoulder curiously, wondering why on Earth the noble, who just a few moments ago had been urging him to go as fast as possible, was now telling him to cease all movement.

The timid driver didn't have to wait long for an answer.

With a grand kick, the door to the carriage flew open and the finely dressed redhead strode out, confidence and pride following in his wake.

Every inch of him screamed aristocrat.

Long, usually wild, red hair was tamely held back by the immense amount of gel that the royal stylists had applied to it, leaving the very ends of it to swish elegantly wherever he went. He was dressed sharply in an expensive, ruffled, white shirt that had golden cufflinks, a thick collar that hid his neck, and silver buttons down the front. The ruffled ends of the sleeves poked out his pitch black waistcoat that was cutaway at the waist and had two long tailcoats in the back, reaching his ankles. Detailed, silver, and dark red embroidery covered the area around the coat's folded cuffs, opening flaps, and all down the tailcoats. He had left the coat's buffed, silver buttons undone, causing the jacket to fly about him whenever he spun on his heels. A pair of slightly loose, white breeches reached down to his knee-length, black leather boots and disappeared into the shoe's cuffs. A few wrinkles from the earlier battering lined his once crisp attire.

Wheeling about on his now soiled heels, Asch stalked towards the shaken driver. If looks could kill, the driver would have been murdered now because of the death look his passenger was sending him.

Behind the angry redhead, scampered his two assistants/advisors, Florian and Romdas; both looked quite shaken as they tried to calm their master.

With the two flanking Asch's sides and the redhead still approaching him with a murderous aura, it almost looked like a scene straight out of a book with a feral wolf and his two yapping companions going in for the kill. Unfortunately, that thought did nothing to ease the discomfort bubbling in the poor driver's stomach.

"Really, Sir Asch, it can't be helped!" Florian pointed out, scribbling something down on his clipboard.

Only coming up to about Asch's waist, it was hard to see the young boy as anything but a child with his adolescent features and squeaky voice. On the contrary, he was more efficient at his job then many of the servants back home and had been Asch's assistant for the past two years.

A set of thinly rimmed glasses poised on the edge of his nose, hiding his bright green eyes behind their glossy lenses. His long green hair was always submissively pulled into two white and green hair wraps, almost making him look like he had low pigtails. His choice of clothing was also a bit…odd. Opting for a scholar look, Florian was wearing an oversized grayish navy robe with a white collar. A slim red ribbon tied itself around the collar and added some color to his bland appearance. What looked like striped, red, and white tights covered what was visible of his legs; the rest being covered by the robe and a pair of polished, pointed, black shoes.

"Yes, the road is quite steep and uneven here," Romdas agreed in his thick English accent, mustache twitching as he did so. He had a very butler appearance instead of that of an advisor.

The shaken driver scuttled backwards on his perch to put as much distance as possible between him and the approaching murderer, uh, noble. Even with the constant chattering following him, it did nothing to simmer down his vicious impression.

"Agreed!" Florian assured, hoping to catch up with the storming male and causing loose dirt to fly from his movements, "…And if you kill the driver now, we'll have a murder case on our hands and you won't be able to meet Princess Natalia on time!"

It was like a switch had been flicked. As if on cue when the Princess's name was said, Asch's exterior instantly softened, his hand unclenching and lip uncurling. Abruptly stopping his thudding footsteps, the redhead's still hardened gaze darted from the coachman to Florian and back again, as if deciding if it was really worth it.

Florian had him, and he knew it. The mere thought of the Princess, his future wife, mesmerized him to the point where if he was walking off a cliff into a thundering sea, he wouldn't so much as blink.

To say he was in **love **was going too far… No, what was the word the noble had used? …Infatuated. Yes, he was in infatuated with the mysterious young woman. Not much was known about her other then the fact that she was to be the future Queen of Kimlasca and that she was to marry Asch fon Fabre willingly.

That was the part that really struck the noble. She agreed to marry the feared-on-the-battlefield Asch fon Fabre in a moment's notice without a second thought. Yes, it was an arranged marriage and technically she was only doing it for the ring, but if she really didn't want to marry him, she could have always said no and lived off of healing artes until they found a cure.

But she didn't do that.

When the formal marriage proposal was signed by him and sent away for the Princess's signature, she had sent it back a day later with her name grandly and boldly inked forever on the document. There were still some loopholes, like if once they met they didn't click at all, then the marriage could be called off or if the Princess reconsidered, but as of now, it was stable.

The funny thing was, this one girl had already snagged his attention and yet he had no idea what she looked like. Ever since her mother had mysteriously died, the Princess, who was two at the time, had never been allowed outside of the castle or in the public eye.

He had caught faint murmurs of descriptions from the in-between maids, but not much to paint a picture with. Asch knew she was fairly tall, but in a ladylike way, had honey-blonde/brownish-blonde/light brown hair (it changed depending on the servant he talked to), and was every inch the speculated image of royalty.

It didn't seem right that someone fitting her description was condemned to a life in the castle, forever burdened with her disease. Asch wanted to change that.

Why, he didn't know. He wasn't a condescending person, so it wasn't for wealth or the fame. He didn't know if she was breathtakingly beautiful or if she even had a manageable personality.

The bottom line was, what's done was done, and he was engaged to said girl.

Finally, letting out a fuming sigh, the redhead turned away from the stunned driver and waved him off. "Just try to drive more carefully. I don't need a migraine on the day I meet my fiancé and if by the end of this I do have one, I'll make sure to sue you for all you're worth."

Okay not exactly off the hook, but not dead either.

Nodding even though Asch was already loading himself back into the carriage and couldn't see it, the driver cautiously tightened his hold on the reins and reassured the beasts that everything was fine, even though his own voice was shaking at best.

Clambering inside the coach along with Asch, Florian and Romdas settled back into their original seating position; Florian on Asch's left side and Romdas sitting parallel from the seemingly distracted noble, emerald eyes on the open window's view.

Silently, the wheels of the coach turned to continue along their path, going at a much slower pace and taking to hitting the rocks much less roughly. The only sounds penetrating the silence between the three was Florian's rushed scribbling on his clipboards, pausing only to glance at the stiff Romdas and apprehensive Asch before going about his recording.

"…She likes orchids," Romdas unexpectedly stated, eyes on a passing tree.

Florian looked up from his papers while Asch blinked at his advisor. "What?" they both inquired.

"The Princess… She likes orchids."

A beat of silence once again passed between the three out of the randomness of the situation. Fortunately, it didn't last long.

"Write that down," Asch ordered his stunned assistant.

Florian didn't need to be told twice.

XxxxxxxX

_Baticul Castle_

_Princess's Chambers…_

"I love this kingdom," Natalia mused, idly leaning forward against her balcony rail as her evergreen gaze swept over the countless rooftops and lively streets of Baticul below her. White fingers gripped the smooth ivory rail gracefully while she let her thoughts wonder, ignoring the concerned glances received from her handmaid and cheagle who were both seated on the edge of her bed and had a good view of said balcony.

It was funny. She loved this kingdom with all her heart and yet…she barely knew it. Had barely even seen it. All of her evidence was based off of pictures found in discarded books in the royal library and what she could see and hear from her perch on her balcony. She did not even remember once stepping outside the palace to at least see what Baticul had to offer. The stores, the people, the houses… She had never even set her gaze upon what she was to rule.

The people knew her by a name; no face memorized to place the title with.

Malkuth knew her as an impressive enemy and target that would soon become an immediate threat.

…Asch fon Fabre only saw her as the incapable Princess who was to marry into their enemy kingdom just to secure her own welfare. In truth, it sounded selfish to her ears.

The joining of Malkuth and Kimlasca wouldn't go without its fair share of snags and squabbles that hopefully would pass in due time. General positions needed to be confirmed, people who didn't make the cut for the army positions would be cut down (no doubt hurting their income for their family if they had one), rulers needed to be decided, territories to set up, pirates would be dealt with as soon as possible… It all seemed overwhelming.

And, without a doubt, somewhere along that line, Natalia would have to take over everything on the Kimlasca side. Her father was getting along in age and it would be unwise of her to just refuse the marriage and go gallivanting around with the kingdom in dire need of a ruler.

To safely secure her people and the future land, marrying Asch fon Fabre was the best—no, **only** choice. It was her duty and all her life she had learned to not go by what her heart yearned for but by what was best for the Kimlasca. She couldn't just turn her back on her whole upbringing on a whim.

It was only fair to the people that she gave them a promising rule to look forward to and a protected future.

But…something, **something, **in the back of her subconscious had been nipping at her since she had made the decision to marry Asch and acquire the Malkuth Ring of Loyalty. Something was telling her that this situation seemed so wrong. No matter what she did, the little doubts would not disperse and continued bothering her on sleepless nights.

What about her needs? What about what she wanted? Wasn't the best ruler one who was happy with every ounce of their life? One who was the mere image of perfection to the public eye? How could she be content restrained to one man for the rest of her life when she hadn't even taking one step out of Baticul? Wasn't she, a capable woman, supposed to learn to take care of herself before even considering the option of being a bride?

Wasn't she expected to love the man she was to marry? Wasn't her husband intended to be a man who she thought dearly of; not some complete and utter stranger?

She had given her entire life to Kimlasca at birth, when would she finally be able to live simply for herself? No politics; no arranged marriages; no gem mounted on her palm and endangering her life… Purely a humble lifestyle that she had so often read about in her numerous romance novels.

Yes, Natalia was selfish in wanting a fairytale life, but, weren't we all?

A silent sigh escaped the blonde's thin lips, eyes grazing the long, and only, trek of green running up along Baticul's main street and ending at the iron gate entrance. Scare, short, unhealthy tree--if that was even the proper word for something so scrawny—were plotted randomly in the center, given barely enough room for the roots to even begin their trip into the soil.

If her mother was alive, she would surely fix that. The little flora. …She had always loved the royal garden with a passion. The orchids were her favorite if she recalled correctly. Well, like mother, like daughter.

Unconsciously, Natalia loosened her grip of the railing to trace the accursed gem on her bare palm. She loathed the thing with a bitter ardor.

If it wasn't for the gem, her life would be normal; or at least, as normal as a royal life could be.

She wouldn't be forced into marriage.

She wouldn't have her life hanging by a thread.

She wouldn't have to get those dreadful shots or medication every week.

And she wouldn't have had her mother taken from her.

She would still be able to scurry down the porcelain stairs and burst through the crisscrossed, ivory doors into the overflowing garden and find her beautiful mother waiting there with open arms. She would still be able to inhale the sweet smell of lilacs, roses, daffodils, orchids, and all of the other flowers that once thrived in the sacred garden. She would still be able to fruitlessly try to water the tiny potted plants with the oversized watering can, only to spill half of it on her dress.

She wouldn't have to live this kind of life if this despised gem would just shatter into a million tiny, unsolvable pieces.

But, that was but a meager wish. And wishes only got you so far. She should know.

Her mother had always wanted this kingdom to thrive...with her daughter at the core of it all.

"…I've decided," Natalie abruptly stated, wheeling away from the view and facing her slightly startled companions. Her olive eyes suddenly shown with new resolve and a fragile smile plastered itself across her lips.

"And?" Tear prodded, arching one eyebrow and swiftly getting to her feet. "What is your decision, Mi'lady?"

Hand clenched into fists and gaze steady, Natalie surveyed first her handmaid and then her curious pet, looking for something only she herself knew. A shaky breath drew into her parched lips and her eyelids slid shut.

_Mother, I hope I will make you proud…by restoring Kimlasca to what it once was._

"I've decided…that I will marry Asch fon Fabre."

A beat of silence passed around the room. Mieu's mouth hung agape and his large eyes blinked in utter shock while Tear, herself, was frozen in place. This was not the answer either were expecting.

"I've already told him yes," Natalia continued, trying to explain herself while she crossed the threshold of her room and busied herself with trying on different jewelry options for the celebration that would be held that night. "And it would be a terrible shame for him to have to go all the way back to Malkuth after a two day trip from Grand Chokmah. I'm sure he isn't that bad either. I'm probably just overacting. It's only marriage, right? I mean, royalty usually does this anyways so it's not a big surprise or anything…"

She had to keep up a strong, happy façade. At least until the wedding was over. Otherwise, her father would start to worry and Asch might get the wrong impression from her depressing aura. She didn't want anyone hurt; that would just make things ten times worse.

She would wait until she was alone to let her tears lose. Alone and unable to be heard.

Tear listened to her Lady's meaningless babble in silence, eyes trained on the Princess's reflection in her vanity mirror while she held up a pair of silver earrings to gaze upon. No matter how hard the blonde tried to hide it, Tear sensed the unsure doubts lurking in the back of the Princess's mind and the sadness bubbling just beneath the surface. They had known each other too long to try and hide something like this from one another.

"Mi'lady." Tear's voice came out strained as she interrupted the constant flow of words. "Are you sure?"

Silence was her answer.

The smile on Natalia's reflection slowly dispersed whilst she placed the necklace she was admiring down on the counter. Her face was suddenly solemn as she glanced back at Tear through the mirror, hands slightly shaking as they gripped the edge of the counter. "Honestly Tear?"

"Honestly, Mi'lady."

Mieu simply watched the exchange in silence, not understanding how the mood seemed to switch from serious to happy to sad so fast and his head whirling as he tried to keep up.

Natalia collapsed on her vanity bench with a groan, hands placed ever so delicately on her temples. "I don't know," she choked, sounding close to tears. "I honestly and truly don't know what I should do."

Tear blinked and bowed her head in sympathy. "I see…"

She was not experienced in the ways of love and nothing that raked her mind came off as comforting words that would ease the Princess's torn heart. For the first time, there was nothing Tear could do.

"Master?" The cheagle, who had jumped from the bedpost onto the bench with ease, poked the blonde's covered arm in concern. "Please cheer up."

Neither noticed when Tear silently paced over to the door and pivoted on her heels to face the Princess's stooped over back and worried cheagle. "…Shall I go arrange the fitting for your wedding gown then?"

She knew the Princess didn't want anyone to see in her such a crushed state so leaving would be the best option for both of them. Mieu was the only exception to that unsaid rule.

"…Yes, thank you Tear," Natalia answered stiffly, not turning around to face her.

Opening the door, Tear suddenly paused with her hand still on the golden knob and turned around to glance at her now shaking friend. "Milady? …I'm sorry."

There were no more words left to say or comfort Natalia as the door quietly clicked shut. Leaving her free to cry as she pleased. "T-Thank you, T-Tear," she murmured.

XxxxxxxX

_Iron Maiden: Baticul's Second Inn_

_First Floor, Bar Area…_

Glasses clinked together in unknown harmony as they were slid back into their upside down positions on the rack, sparkling with the light filtering through the dirty panes of the window and hitting them just right into a rainbow of colors. Softly hummed notes to a mysterious folk song filled the empty space and drifted up the old stairs before they were out of hearing range.

Noelle continued to melodiously hum as she busted the wooden bar counter with an old rag she had found strewn across the unwashed glasses in the sink. She had meant to wash most of them, but the dusty counter covered with old scratches just begged to be given a good wipe down.

Honestly, didn't people know how to take care of an eating establishment anymore?

The notes to the song flowed in and out of her throat with ease, sometimes coming out in words before she realized that she was singing and snapped her jaw shut again only to continue with her hymns a few moments later. Where she had learned it she couldn't quite remember… It was beautiful sounding though. Maybe she had picked it up in Sheridan.

Brushing a stray hair behind her ear for the umpteenth time, the blonde suddenly sighed in defeat, threw the rag on the counter, and waltzed over to a lone, oversized mirror covering most of the east wall in the small bar area.

Light brown eyes stared back at her, framed by shoulder-length, flipped out blonde locks with various beads randomly woven into their tresses. The only thing that kept her shortened bangs from falling into her gaze was a torn piece of cloth that served as a headband and ranged in colors from light orange to russet brown, leaving only a few wisps to tickle her high cheekbones. A pair of large but thin golden hoop earrings dangled on both sides of her face.

"Come on," Noelle breathed, undoing one of her frazzled plaits and trying to rework it with a few more locks gathered into it. "Can't they just stay perfect for one night?"

Tying the glassed red bead on the end again, Noelle surveyed the rest of her attire.

A rich red top festooned with a mixture of designs and symbols flaring around the edges in gold thread covered one of her arms and ended just above her midriff. A line of white thread woven into the fabric separated the golden design areas from the plain scarlet ones. Wrapping around her lower waist was a long, fluid skirt of the same color and the same designs embroidered into the end. It only came down to her ankles, leaving her gold ankle bracelets visible and had a silt riding up to her lower thigh on one side, revealing the deep tan tights she wore underneath. A pair of simple, leather sandals with red ribbons tying up her calf finished off her "disguise".

Overall, she thought she looked very suitable. The crew had told her she looked cute but she wouldn't believe it until she heard it directly from the Captain's own lips. She had given him plenty of opportunities to comment on her new articles of clothing but lately he had seemed distracted.

Or maybe he was always like that around her and she was just now noticing. Her being female probably didn't help ease matters anyways, no matter how long they had traveled the high seas together.

The gentle tingle of bell north to her signaled someone's arrival and caused her to raise her eyebrows in slight surprise. She didn't expect anyone to be coming around this early and she surely didn't want to be caught staring at herself in the mirror. How vain.

A sigh of relief swept through the blonde when her eyes landed on the tiny girl gazing out the door window, as if to check if she had been followed or to look for an approaching comrade. When the coast seemed clear, the raven-haired girl sank down flat on her feet that had been on tip-toed to see outside the window, and swept the back of her hand over her brow. "Whew. Didn't catch me."

"Close call, Anise?" Noelle dipped her head to the side and scrutinized the girl. She didn't **look **worn-out nor did she appear harmed.

"Not really. But ya never know. A cute girl like me is easy to point out in the crowds." Anise jogged over to one of the red-leathered stools running parallel to the bar. "Mind getting me a free drink? The merchants on the streets here are all cheapskates."

The blonde chuckled while walking to her position behind the bar again. "Sure thing, Anise. …Get everything we need?"

"Yep!" Anise pulled a flimsy notepad from the folds of her black belt encircling her waist. "The God-Generals are real jabberers when they don't know we're listening."

"I suppose so," she agreed, taking a clean glass and filling it with some of the foamy water available underneath the bar. She saw Anise grimace at the concoction and giggled. "Sorry 'bout this. Captain's orders. Not one of the crew members is allowed to have any alcohol before the big heist."

"Leave it to Guy," Anise groaned, nonetheless taking the cup and chugging half of it down with one gulp. "So, anything come up? Have any trouble tying up the original owner?"

"Nope. Everything's been peaceful so far. And that guy was no match for me. It was easy as pie knocking him unconscious and storing him in the basement." The blonde smirked with triumph. "I think I'm getting us to this 'Take-out-the-owner-and-us-area-as-temporary-base stuff.'"

"I'll say. Wasn't he like six foot something?"

"Six foot three actually. Still didn't put up much of a fight."

Anise grinned. "Seduce 'em and then knock 'em out?"

"You know it."

The young girl's reddish-brown eyes scanned the empty diner. "Busy?" she said sarcastically.

"Business will pick up as soon as the celebration starts. Hopefully not too many people come. There's only one me to go around."

The raven-haired girl arched in eyebrow in slight disgust, aimlessly stirring the contents of her drink around. "Ah, yes. The _party._"

"Why so glum? I thought you liked those sort of things."

"I do. But this isn't one of our parties. It's important, and classy, and stuck-up, and boring, and technically we're not invited."

"Technically, smechnically. The Captain's decided we're going anyways, right?"

"Yep," Anise drawled, popping the 'p' while she took another sip of her drink. "And I've just confirmed it. The God-Generals are going to be the party crashers of tonight's festivities."

"Oh my." Noelle held a hand in mock surprise to her mouth. "You mean that they're actually going to be there in _person_ and not throw the blame on _us_?"

"Basically. …Well, I don't know if they'll find a way to frame us or not, but I'm pretty sure we'll get the short end of the leash either way. …Unless Kimlasca forces kill them first."

Noelle arched an eyebrow. "Why would they be anywhere near Kimlascan forces? Aren't they all trained on overseeing the castle ball tonight?"

"Yeah…and that's exactly the party them and us have to crash, unfortunately," Anise groaned, gulping down the final swigs of water left in her glass.

The blonde froze, hand resting on the rag as if she was just restarting to wipe the table again. "What?!"

"Didn't you hear?" Anise cocked her eyebrows. "Guy already knew that they were planning on taking something tonight during the festivals. He just didn't know if it would be _inside _the castle or _outside _the castle around the town square where the main 'commoner's' party will take place. They choose the big one."

Noelle could do nothing but blink. "…So we're going to have to storm the palace-the place filled to the brim with guards ready to kill us and try to beat them to the prize?"

Anise shrugged her shoulders and glance around the room nonchalantly. "That's the gist of it."

"Aren't you worried?"

She snorted. "Uh, Yeah! I might hurt this cute little body of mine trying to keep up with those two idiots." The second mate surveyed Noelle's blank and incredulous face. "It's only going to be the three of us though. Me, Guy, and Luke. Anyone else would be dead weight." No need to get their ship driver worked up over nothing.

"Only three?!" Obviously Anise's attempt at comforting backfired. "Anise there will be thousands upon thousands of guards there! No matter where you go! We're already wanted for three murders we didn't commit; if they find you and the God-Generals have already acted, they'll waste no time in killing you all!" Her stomach swam in nausea at the thought of her three fellow crew men being hunted down like animals with no place to run.

Not even Guy. No, especially not Guy.

"Relax, Noelle. We've pulled off tougher stuff," Anise offered, keeping her eyes trained on the empty cup next to her. She couldn't meet Noelle's wide with fright brown eyes. "We'll be fine."

Hand gripping the edge of the bar to steady herself, Noelle gulped. "…Have you even talked to the Captain about this yet?"

"No; not yet. But, like I said, he was having his suspicions before I let on reconnaissance work, so I'm sure it won't come as a big surprise."

"And how are you so sure of that?" If possible, her eyes got even wider as she fruitlessly tried to talk some sense into the stubborn girl.

"We're gonna have to go through with it either way…"

"Anise! Is risking three lives really worth this so-called prize!? Would it really be the end of the world if we let the God-Generals have it just this once!?"

Still, Anise remained uncaring, numb. "Well, maybe not the end of **our** world, but…"

A disgruntled sigh passed through the blonde's lips and her fingers found her sore temples. This was getting them nowhere. What was the prize anyways? How could anything be worth their lives?

_Count to ten, inhale, exhale, breathe,_ she mentally reminded herself.

"Anise," she tried again, this time much calmer than before. "There. Is. No. Way that the three of you, alone, can sneak into the castle, pass the guards unnoticed, grab the prize before the God-Generals, and sneak out. It's just not possible."

Why was she trying so hard to convince the mere second mate that the idea was a failure in the making? Guy was reckless. If Anise could talk Luke into thinking it was a good idea,-and that was not a hard task considering Luke-Guy would immediately set the plan into action as long as no one else's lives were in danger.

That was his big flaw. He cared too much about everyone else that he didn't even stop to consider the risk he himself was taking. And sometimes that frustrated Noelle to no end.

"We **have **to, Noelle. The prize isn't some gem," Anise declared, getting fed up with the bickering and glaring at the blonde.

"Then what is it?" Noelle snapped, images of her dead comrades flying across her mind's eye. She was trying so hard to understand just what Anise was thinking that her brain was probably overheating. "What could possibly be worth something so reckless, and stupid, and dangerous, and just out right idiotic!?"

Narrowing her eyes, Anise stubbornly crossed her arms over her chest and studied her companion. The now frazzled hair, heavy breathing, frantic expression, and hurt frown adorning her features.

The puppeteer suddenly sighed in defeat, sharp expression relaxing. Noelle cared too much. She was like the very patient and handy mother of the Albiores that everyone wished they had until they got scolded by her and then wished that they didn't make the first wish. Her concern got annoying at times like these.

"The Princess is the prize," Anise muttered, waiting for the predicted reaction.

All anger rapidly drained from the once enraged blonde. Her eyes softened, but were still wide enough to see the whites, and her clenched hands abruptly fell limp at her sides.

The Princess… **The **_Princess. _Of all the…

It all at once clicked in her mind; Anise's determination, and everything else. The gears in her mind picked up speed again and yet, still, all she could do was stare at Anise.

The God-Generals were planning to **kidnap** the Princess. Not just any princess but Kimlasca's only princess on the night she was to met her fiancé.

And if the God-Generals succeeded and the Albiores were still in town when they got away…

"They would throw the blame on us," Noelle muttered, face vacant of emotion. It was times like these that she wished she was an easier fainter. Then, she could simply slip into unconscious and wake up when the whole thing was over.

Anise nodded to her statement. "We have to get there first."

In spite of all the swirling emotions-anxiety, worry, anger, determination, and hope-in her head, Noelle found she could only mutter one word. Well, two words to be precise. "Oh, my."

**A/N: I know, I know. The last part is confusing. For the sake of the story I'm gonna ask you all to roll with it for now. Any questions feel free to ask in a review or a PM. Free all the time. The last two parts were my attempts at trying to convey emotions. Had to get them out of the way so we could get to swash-buckling fight stuff. Reviews would be ever so helpful to tell me what you honestly think of my 10,000 plus chapter. Hopefully this keeps you sastisfied for a while-(Fingers suddenly fall off from too much typing). Er... Bye? **

**P.S: LukeXTear moments will be in the next chapter!**

**P.S.S: If any of you have the time, I would like to request that you vote on the poll on my profile page. You can't decide a winner unless you have more then three voters!**

**P.S.S.S: Don't ask how I'm still writing when my fingers fell off. **


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